Stypula 1

Harrison Stypula

Michael Arnzen

SEL 107 11

8/22/20

My Writing Process

Being a bit of a perfectionist, my writing process has struggled a bit in the early years of

my academic history. I have never been a fan of doing outlines or doing revisions after finishing

projects. Getting things done in the first shot was the kind of standard I held myself to and

anything besides that really got on my nerves, but luckily now, after more practice and

experience, I can see the purpose of using those writing techniques.

With my preferred writing style now, I still consider myself a bit of a perfectionist, but

with a lot more room for errors and the need for revisions.

I do not usually prepare myself in any way before I write, apart from trying to be in a

good mindset. When writing fiction, I often find that if I am not “feeling” what I’m writing, then

what I put down just won’t be as good of quality compared to when I really feel like writing.

Luckily, that hang up does not usually affect my ability to write when it comes to non-fiction or

school papers. I typically try, when first sitting down to a blank page, to just get the first sentence

out, knowing it will probably need to be changed later. Getting the awkward opening sentence or

paragraph out allows me to get to the more interesting sections of what I am writing, where I can

really get into “the zone”, as I like to call it. This process of getting through the opening

sentences to get into the flow of things usually takes me anywhere from half an hour to

sometimes as long as two hours if I’m particularly struggling with the topic, but once I start

writing I typically have no trouble keeping the ball rolling for as long as I want or need to.
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Whenever I find myself having a hard time or getting stuck on a certain point without

being able move past it, even if searching for inspiration fails to help, I’ve learned it’s always

best to just take a break for a few hours. Giving myself some time to think things over usually

allows me to get back to it with a fresh perspective and keep moving at a good pace.

As far as why I have the methods for writing that I do, I am not sure. When I write,

especially when it’s just for fun, I tend to take an idea and let it go without worrying in the

moment about what will need changed later, as that slows me down and can be fixed later on. I

feel that something just clicked for me, somewhere around the time when I wrote my first

research paper, that just trying to write first and edit later works best for me. While I was

researching different writing techniques, I found that many scholars and other students used this

method as well.

Whenever I’m writing, let’s say a research paper or essay on ancient philosophy, I know

I’m close to being done after any discussion points or requirements are met, then I follow that up

with proofreading and editing as needed. Once that is done and I am satisfied with what I am

discussing and know all requirements are met, I can say with certainty that I am finished with my

writing.

I don’t really know that I can say there’s anything about my process of writing that makes

it different from anyone else’s, with the exception that I can usually write easier when it is late at

night, but early morning classes make that particular habit a little less practical nowadays. I don’t

really think that the process I use for writing is that special, but I know that it helps me get my

writing closer to the quality that I want it to be. I don’t know that I will ever consider my writing

to be up to the standard that I hold myself to, but as long as I can keep improving, this process

will work for me.